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FAIL TO GAIN

The ins and outs of training to failure for showstopping gains.

ROB FITZGERALD

The ins and outs of training to failure for showstopping gains.

Failure is your friend. Failure to understand failure, however, is another story — especially in terms of taking sets to failure in your workouts. There’s a way to do it right and there’s a way to do it wrong, and we’re willing to wager that most of you are all too familiar with the latter. If you’re part of this failingto- fail-properly group, however, you’re in luck.On the following pages, we define training to failure once and for all — and show you, with some help from our experts, how, why and when to break out this time-tested technique for adding mass and building the physique you’re after.

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FAILURE DEFINED

Here’s what happens when you train to failure (thepoint at which your exercise form breaks down).1 Intramuscular adenosine triphosphate beginsto decline. Energy within cells is transportedvia ATP, so an ATP deficit will contribute greatlyto muscular fatigue.2 Creatine phosphate concentrations depletequickly at the beginning of a set, and sincecreatine powers the production of ATP, theenergy stores in muscles can’t be replenished.3 Acid levels begin to build up in muscles. Thisinterferes with muscular contraction, and italso further hinders the production of ATP.

STIMULATING GROWTH

Most of the studies involving trainingto failure have examined the technique’seffect on strength levels. Theprocess by which failure stimulatesgrowth, however, can be easily extrapolatedfrom a simple examination of howmuscle is built.■ When actin-myosin cross-bridges (the machinery in muscles that causes them to contract) can’t be formed as muscles need them — they need ATP for this — the tension in the muscle fibers causes “tears” at the sites where the cross-bridges would have formed.■ These tears, and the subsequent rebuilding of the muscle, stimulate thegrowth process in muscles.■ Training to failure causes more ofthis microtrauma to muscle fibers in ashorter period of time; so, workingmuscles to failure theoretically stimulatesmore growth than stopping a setshort of failure would.■ Research also shows that GH levelsare much higher after workouts takento failure than in other forms of training.This is due to the buildup offatigue-stimulated chemicals in muscle,such as lactic acid, and is also criticalfor stimulating muscle growth.

WHY FAIL?

When you train to failure on a regular basis, it’s bound to mess with yourrecovery, and the consequences can be severe. Each rep that hits failure— and each cheat set you take beyond failure — sets you back more andmore in terms of how much recovery time you’ll need after that particularworkout. With that said, why would anyone want to train to failure?■ IFBB Pro League athlete Stan Efferding goes to failure sporadicallythroughout his training year, usually at the end of his high-volume hypertrophyworkouts. “I’m trying to get more blood to my muscles at the end ofan exercise and stretch out the fascia [the protective sheath that coats musclefibers],” he says. “My goal when training this way is to push as muchweight as I possibly can in an hour.”■ Training to failure builds mental toughness that can’t be achieved whenyou’re always training short of your limits. “Failure helps me discover whatmy limits are,” Efferding says. “With a program of progressive resistance,training to failure enables me to get to my limits, then push past them.”■ IFBB pro Derik Farnsworth utilizes failure to fully fatigue his fast-twitchmuscle fibers, the ones most conducive to promoting effective growth. “Ido it for overload,” he says. “I think the last set of an exercise should reallyknock me out, so training to failure helps me go all out, be economical withmy workouts and not waste any sets.”“I train to failure, because it gives the muscle a harder, more dense andwell-developed look,” says IFBB pro Chris Cormier. “It brings out deepfibers that may otherwise be dormant.”

HOW TO FAIL

Next time you’re in the gym, take a lookaround and see how many people trainto failure on every single set. Accordingto our experts, consistently working failureinto your program this way is a recipefor disaster. Applying the principle correctly,however, can stimulate gainsbeyond anything you’ve ever thoughtpossible. Here’s what they suggest: trainto failure on a movement only once everythree weeks and take time to mentallyrecover in between workouts duringwhich you go to failure in multiple movements.“The psychological part of this iswhy you have to keep your volume low,”says Dave Tate, legendary powerlifterand owner and CEO of Elite FitnessSystems. “That’s why, with programs likeDoggcrapp and high-intensity training,the volume is so low. It’s also why, withprograms like FST-7 [fascia stretch training],which have much higher volumelevels, most sets won’t go to failure.”BEWARE OF FATIGUE “Too much ofanything will give you problems,” saysCormier. “I give myself a period whereI’m pressing the issue, and then I’ll backoff for a period of time to recuperate.”FIND THE RANGE Train to failure onlyon sets within the 8- to 20-rep range.“Going to failure with anything less thanthis is not the best way to train for musclegrowth,” Efferding states.FAIL AT THE END Choose one exerciseper bodypart, and then train tofailure for the last one or two sets forthat bodypart.KNOW YOUR LIMITS It’s OK to cheaton the last rep of a movement if you haveto, but failure should be considered thepoint at which you can’t do another repof an exercise with proper form.

EXERCISE SELECTION

Here is where you’ll find the most room for debate. Canany exercise be taken to failure? What’s best for the purpose— machines or compound, multijoint lifts performedwith free weights?

ADVANTAGES OF TRAINING TO FAILURE WITH MACHINES

■ Exhausting your muscles with machine liftsallows you to train to “true” failure as previouslydefined — the point where your formbreaks down.■ With machines, you’re locked into a movementpattern or groove that doesn’t allow youto cheat — and doesn’t permit breakdowns intechnique — so when you’re done, you knowyou’ve reached true failure.■ Machines help you more efficiently get bloodinto your muscles when training to failure,because you’re isolating a specific muscle andconcentrating solely on working through alactic-acid burn.■ There’s less of a psychological aspect tomachine failure, because machine lifts are generallyaccessory lifts that don’t require significantamounts of mental preparation to perform.You don’t have to psych yourself up to do, say,lat pulldowns or cable crossovers the same wayyou would before you bench or squat.

ADVANTAGES OF TRAINING TO FAILURE WITH COMPOUND LIFTS

■ Compound, multijoint lifts — the bench press, squat and deadlift — give you the best bang for your buckin terms of the amount of muscle fibers you’ll be able to stimulate within the constraints of a set.■ Training to failure with compound lifts builds mental toughness that you won’t get from machines or isolationmovements. “People want to go into the gym and do the little pansy exercises,” says Farnsworth, “butthe only way to get there is through compound moves.”■ Studies have shown that selectively training to failure during compound lifts can increase overall muscularstrength across all lifts.